Machine vision systems, also termed “vision systems” herein, are used to perform a variety of tasks in a manufacturing environment. In general, a vision system consists of one or more cameras with an image sensor (or “imager”) that acquires grayscale or color images of a scene that contains an object under manufacture. Images of the object can be analyzed to provide data/information to users and associated manufacturing processes. The data produced by the image is typically analyzed and processed by the vision system in one or more vision system processors that can be purpose-built, or part of one or more software application(s) instantiated within a general purpose computer (e.g. a PC, laptop, tablet or smartphone). Some types of tasks performed by the vision system can include inspection of objects and surfaces on a moving conveyor or motion stage.
A particular challenge in acquiring and analyzing images of certain surface types—for example, the distribution of paper fibers on a region of a paper surface—is that acquiring images of such features of this type on a surface, at relatively high speed (short exposure time), is enhanced by direct illumination, high resolution, and a relatively short working distance. Providing all these aspects to a single vision system arrangement can be problematic.